Manufacturing and Mechanical Performance Evaluation of Resin-Infused Honeycomb Composites

Abstract

In spite of numerous advantages of open-cell core sandwich composites, the applications have been limited due to the problems involved in manufacturing using low cost processes. Resin accumulation in the core is a major challenge in the fabrication of honeycomb sandwich panels using resin infusion techniques. Foam-filled cores and polymer film barriers are some of the methods used in the literature to address this issue. However, these techniques will increase the weight of the sandwich composites. In this study, honeycomb sandwich panels were manufactured using commercially available film adhesive and modified vacuum-assisted resin transfer molding process. The resin incursion into the core openings was investigated. No accumulation of resin was observed in the core. Flatwise tension, flatwise/edgewise compression, and three-point bending tests were conducted to evaluate the mechanical performance of the sandwich composites. The performance of sandwich panels during a low-velocity impact event was also evaluated. Results indicate that the vacuum-assisted resin transfer molding process can be successfully used to manufacture honeycomb composite sandwich structures using currently available barrier adhesive films.

Meeting Name

SAMPE 2010 Conference and Exhbition

Department(s)

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering

Keywords and Phrases

Sandwich Composites; Honeycomb; Vacuum-Assisted Resin Transfer Molding Process

International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)

0731-6844

Document Type

Article - Journal

Document Version

Citation

File Type

text

Language(s)

English

Rights

© 2010 SAGE Publications, All rights reserved.

Publication Date

01 Jan 2010

Link to Full Text

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